The Psychology of Sudoku

The game of Sudoku is one that has captured the curiosity of the world. The challenge brings out the competitive nature in the mildest of mathematical personalities although it is not a mathematically based game. The illusion of a math solution still draws the curious and determined.

The game of Sudoku is one that asks the player to make a series of assumptions based on what they see in front of them. There is a life lesson here; one just has to see it clearly. The basic premise is to make that series of assumptions which is often what humankind do in just about any situation. But can a solution be found based on assumptions? If one is to base their answer on the game of Sudoku, the answer is yes.

The Sudoku player spends the game placing numbers by trial and error as well. Again another lesson to be had here, does trial and error work? The answer is apparently, yes.

So what is to be gained by choosing these life lessons and judging them as applied by the game? A lot if you are watching the psychology of the world today. We as a people are living our lives a lot like the way this game is played so the question then becomes, are we teaching the next generation to make better and broader assumptions and that trail and error is the way to live their lives? The answer lies somewhere in the gray area of the game. On the one hand the lessons learned from the game are; be patient, watch what you are doing, pay attention to where you have been, and think logically and with reason. On the other hand the lessons could be; make assumptions based on very little information, judge based on what you see, try and get around the rules and figure out the tricks and finally that math isn't really important when trying to figure stuff out. This last one is based on the concept that seems to intrigue everyone, there is no math involved.

It would seem that a person could go in either direction. There are good lessons and there are bad. So maybe the biggest lesson of all is, Sudoku is a lot like life and we all could use a little more patience and a little less judgment. And finally that everyone has to make one major decision…how do you want to play the game?